Acknowledgement

This activity is provided by Talem Health and RME Collaborative.

This activity is supported by an independent educational grant from Gilead Sciences, Inc.

Credit Available

• Physicians — maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
• Nurses — 1.0 Contact Hour (0.5 contact hour of pharmacotherapy credit)

All other healthcare professionals completing this course will be issued a statement of participation.

Target Audience

This activity is designed specifically for primary care clinicians, nurses, and other members of the healthcare team who serve patients from rural and underserved communities.

Program Overview

Despite the availability of highly effective direct-acting antiviral agents for hepatitis C virus (HCV), many individuals in the United States remain untreated. Access to care is particularly challenging in rural and underserved communities where specialist shortages persist, and this issue may be compounded by expanded recommendations which qualify more patients for HCV screening and treatment. Thus, primary care clinicians play a major role in increasing patients’ access to HCV care. In this activity, expert faculty will review best practices for HCV screening and testing, the use of simplified treatment regimens, and how to provide important follow-up care. Patient-centered strategies to reduce barriers in rural and underserved areas and improve adherence to therapy will also be discussed.

This enduring activity is a recorded session from RME Webinar Series that took place on July 22, 2023.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this activity, participants should be better able to:  

• Integrate recommendations for HCV screening into clinical practice
• Apply guideline recommendations for evidence-based treatment and management of HCV 
• Employ patient-centered strategies to overcome barriers to HCV care in rural and underserved communities

Faculty

Nancy S. Reau, MD, FAASLD, AGAF
Richard B. Capps Chair of Hepatology
Professor, Department of Internal Medicine
Division of Digestive Diseases and Nutrition
Rush Medical College
Section Chief of Hepatology
Associate Director of Organ Transplantation
Rush University Medical Center
Chicago, IL

Dana King, MD, MS
Rural Health Expert
Clinical Provider
Atrium Health, Wake Forest Baptist
Winston Salem, NC

Joint Accreditation Statement

In support of improving patient care, Talem Health is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Credit Designation Statement

Physician Continuing Medical Education
Talem Health designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Continuing Nursing Education
The maximum number of hours awarded for this Continuing Nursing Education activity is 1.0 contact hour. Designated for 0.5 contact hour of pharmacotherapy credit for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses.

Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest

Talem Health adheres to the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education. Any individuals in a position to control the content of a CE activity, including faculty, planners, reviewers, or others, are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with ineligible entities (commercial interests). All identified conflicts of interest are thoroughly vetted and mitigated according to Talem Health policy. Talem Health is committed to providing its learners with high quality accredited continuing education activities and related materials that promote improvements or quality in healthcare and not a specific proprietary business interest of an ineligible company.

All relevant financial relationships have been mitigated. 

The faculty reported the following relevant financial relationships with ineligible entities related to the educational content of this CE activity:

Faculty

Nancy S. Reau, MD, FAASLD, AGAF, has disclosed the following relevant financial relationships: consultant/advisory board member for Arbutus Biopharma & Antios Therapeutics, AbbVie, Inc., and Gilead Sciences, Inc.; and grant/research support from AbbVie, Inc., Gilead Sciences, Inc., and Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Dana King, MD, MS, has no relevant financial relationships to disclose.

Planners, Managers, and Reviewer 

The Talem Health planners, managers, and reviewer have nothing to disclose.

Instructions for Participation and Credit

This activity is offered at no cost to participants. To receive CME credit, participants must:

1. Read the CME/CE information, including learning objectives and disclosure statements.
2. Complete the pre-test.
3. View the online activity.
4. Complete the post-test and evaluation form.

A post-test score of 75% or higher is required to obtain credit. Your certificate will be made available for immediate download.

Course Viewing Requirements

Supported Browsers:
Internet Explorer 8.0+ for Windows 2003, Vista, XP, Windows 7, Windows 8.1 and above
Google Chrome 28.0+ for Windows, Mac OS, or Linux
Mozilla Firefox 23.0+ for Windows, Mac OS, or Linux
Safari 6.0+ for Mac OSX 10.7 and above

Supported Phones & Tablets:
Android 4.0.3 and above
iPhone/iPad with iOS 6.1 or above

Disclosure of Unlabeled Use

This educational activity may contain discussion of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not indicated by the FDA. The planners of this activity do not recommend the use of any agent outside of the labeled indications. The opinions expressed in the educational activity are those of the faculty and do not necessarily represent the views of the planners. Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indications, contraindications, and warnings. 

Disclaimer

Participants have an implied responsibility to use the newly acquired information to enhance patient outcomes and their own professional development. The information presented in this activity is not meant to serve as a guideline for patient management. Any procedures, medications, or other courses of diagnosis or treatment discussed or suggested in this activity should not be used by clinicians without evaluation of their patient’s conditions and possible contraindications and/or dangers in use, review of any applicable manufacturer’s product information, and comparison with recommendations of other authorities. 

©RME Collaborative, a division of Talem Health, LLC. All Rights Reserved. These materials may be used for personal use only. Any rebroadcast, distribution, or reuse of this presentation or any part of it in any form for other than personal use without the express written permission of Talem Health, LLC is prohibited.

Media

Internet activity

Fee Information

There is no fee for this educational activity.

Contact Information

General Questions
For questions about this activity, please contact RME Collaborative (a division of Talem Health) at 800-913-9370 or cme@cmeruralhealth.com.